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I was never a big fan of Valentines Day as it always seemed like such a commercialised excuse of an event. Love is wonderful and amazing, but I feel like that’s something we should be celebrating every day. All of those roses and chocolates don’t really mean anything – though admittedly, I would never decline roses and chocolate (especially not chocolate). The thing that I like best about these sort of celebratory days though, is that it gives an excuse for some themed make up looks! And they’re really great for boosting creativity – which is what I’ve needed lately.
Recently, Althea Korea launched a selection of make up from their own brand – all of which they sent me over to play around with and to create a pictorial. In the past, I’ve used their skincare and some setting powders – most of which I’ve loved – but this is actually their first foray into colour cosmetics. The most logical thing to do would be a Korean inspired look but I wanted to do something a little different today.
So, today I’ll be showing you how I achieved this Valentines Day themed look with cute rosy cheeks, some pretty raspberry tones and a cute little heart detailing. Although this is a Valentines look, this is really something you could wear for any occasion – because love is never out of style! I wanted to do something more creative but that would also be wearable enough so that it can be worn outside of instagram.
In this tutorial/pictorial, I’ll be featuring the new Althea Korea cosmetics too so, let’s go!
Starting out with bare skin, I first applied the Skin Relief Spot Film Gel to some of my blemishes. This is an optional step but would be good for people who have active break outs or problem skin. Essentially, this product is a tacky gel texture that applies over skin and dries to form a matte film – this gives your skin extra protection as it forms a barrier against the make up. This would be best for people with a few stray break outs as it would be too much to apply all over your face.
That all being said, if you do use this product then I would recommend patting on your base make up fairly gently. The product is make to peel off at the end of the day, so it is easily rubbed off an can pill if you press any make up in too intensely.
This Skin Relief Spot Film Gel is available on Althea for $4.50 – so it’s pretty affordable! It also has tea tree oil, centella and pine leaf extracts to help treat your break outs even while you have make up on.
And after that, comes your base make up! This is pretty personal to your skin type but – for me – I decided to use a cushion type product which has a very nice semi-matte finish (once dried). Since I’ve had it for a while, it’s actually slowly running out so it’s even more matte now – oops. I actually think I need to repurchase this soon.
For this type of look, I would recommend using either a dewy or semi-matte foundation/cushion. Either a light or medium coverage would work well, as it still retains a somewhat fresh and natural look on your skin, but if you prefer a more intense coverage then by all means do! If you are using a foundation though (i.e. not an all-in-one cushion product) then I would highly recommend using a face primer before hand too.
To conceal, I’m going to be using the Althea Flawless Creamy Concealer, which is a liquid tip concealer that comes in four colours – Vanilla, Ginger, Honey and Mocha. Their range would be enough to stretch from fair to medium skin tones – however, they all have relatively warm skin tones (the lightest shade is more neutral) so this isn’t the most flexible product.
That all being said, it has a very creamy and blendable formula. I actually like to use this under my eyes as I find it hydrating and blends in well with my foundation. Most concealers look too dry on me but this is good! That being said, it isn’t too dewy to cover up spots either as it still has a matte finish and medium-high buildable coverage.
Swatches are below!
With the concealer, I used the shade Vanilla for under my eyes – as I like a brightened undereye (even then, my lack of sleep is way too evident). For blemishes and covering redness, I used Ginger, which is closer to my natural skin tone. I blended out the concealer with the same cushion puff as my foundation, with the left over product further helping it to blend.
With concealer, some people prefer to use it before, some people after. For this tutorial, I decided to use it after as I wanted to maximise coverage from the product. If you prefer a more natural finish with a medium coverage from the product, then you can apply concealer before your foundation.
After the concealer, you can choose to either set your make up with powder or not. For this particular look, I chose not to though I usually would – the application of both the foundation and concealer adhered really well to my skin, so it wasn’t necessary.
And the most exciting part of any make up look (for me, anyway) would be the eyeshadow! For this tutorial, I’m playing with the new Althea Eyeshadow Palette, also called the Sunrise & Moonrise Palette (which was created as a collaboration with Indonesian singer/actress, Bunga Citra Lestari or BCL). This is a primarily warm toned eyeshadow palette which has eight shades in a variation of three finishes – matte, satin and metallic.
According to the Althea website: “These 8 shades will take you from gorgeous daytime to sultry night time, giving you the effortlessly glamorous feminine style Bunga is known for. In shimmers, mattes and glitters, these pigmented shadows glide easily onto the skin and blend out like a dream, allowing you to create an array of looks suitable for any occasion.”
This is available on the Malaysian Althea page for RM140 but I haven’t seen it on the global website yet – hopefully, it is coming soon!
The shades are as follows (from left to right, top to bottom):
- Pale shimmery nude
- Matte light brown
- Metallic rose with gold reflect
- Metallic warm gold
- Rich, medium brown shimmer with gold micro-glitter
- Deep wine/burgundy shimmer
- Pale pink-purple satin
- Cool toned purple shimmer with a subtle blue reflect
In addition, the Sunrise & Moonrise Palette also comes with a full sized mirror (great for travel). It comes house in a glossy black palette case with magenta foil text and a sturdy magnetic closure. Overall, the palette seems sturdy and there is a good range of shades there for both day and night looks.
The pigmentation is decent and what I would expect from an Asian eye palette. I love the softness of the matte shade and the satins are very nicely pigmented. However, I feel like the metallics aren’t vibrant enough and apply more like a sheer eye topper. Even with a damped brush or finger application, the pigmentation doesn’t change.
And here’s how I did this actual eye look!
BROWS
I started this look with my brows already done, as I feel like that’s a very personal step. For myself, I like to use a brow pomade and a fibre mascara. This is my typical every day routine and works the best for my personal style.
PRIMER
After that, I first applied an eyeshadow primer and tapped it out. It’s important to properly blend out the primer first and allow it to dry, otherwise you can end up with patchiness – especially if you are then working with matte eyeshadows.
BASE – Matte Light Brown
After that, I started out with the matte light brown shade applied over my entire eye. This is a little bit too dark for me to use as a base shade, as I usually use a lighter cream colour, but this works well to give a bit of dimension too. I tend to blend this just a little above my crease to help with blending other colours.
MEDIUM BROWN SATIN
After that, I used the warm medium brown shade (shade 1) to go into my crease and blend it out. As I did that, I dragged out the shadow and blended it up a bit higher to create more space for the ‘heart’ later on. By dragging the shadow out, it can make eyes look larger and also helps to blend out the dramatic wing that we will be adding later on. This brown shadow is essentially the ‘sketch’ of the next step.
DEEP BURGUNDY/WINE SATIN
From there, I went into the deeper burgundy shade (shade 2) with a fluffy brush and added that into the outer two thirds of my eye. This gives the eye look a very pretty rosy shade, while the use of a fluffy blending brush gives a lighter application. I find this eyeshadow to be quite buildable too so I gave a light wash over two thirds of the eye but built the colour to be deeper on the outer third. I also blended this up about halfway to my brow.
METALLIC ROSE GOLD AND PALE PINK SATIN
To add a shimmer accent to this look, I applied the metallic rose gold (shade 3) to the inner third of the eye. I used a flat packaging brush to pick up the product and then dampened it with MAC Cosmetics Fix+ to help it apply better. Alternatively, you can also do a spot application of a glitter glue. I was originally hoping for a bolder, more vibrant pigmentation but it seems that this shade is more subtle. It applied much like a metallic topper over the eyes.
I also added the pale pink satin to my brow bone – just lightly – to further create that romantic, pink hued eye look. I you like, you can also apply some of this to the inner corner but I chose to use this next product instead.
After this, I played with the Althea Spotlight Eye Glitter – a liquid glitter eye liner that comes in two shades (Gold Light and Pink Light). I actually don’t use glitter eyeliner a lot, even though I love how pretty they are, because they do take a bit of time to finesse – and I’m way too lazy in the morning. They’re fun to use for special occasion make up though and it feels like you can’t really do a romantic eye look without a bit of glitter on the eyes.
According to Althea, “This sparkly number doubles up as both an eyeshadow and a liner to light up the eyes for some perky, glamorous peepers. Whether you like a subtle glow or a full-on glitter look, these have a hydrating formula that glides on like butter over the lids, allowing for an easy blend. Don’t wait too long though, as they do set down, making them virtually budge-proof after.”
As I previously mentioned, this comes in two shades – a white and gold glitter (Gold Light) or a pink glitter (Pink Light).
Applying this onto the eyes, I decided to do a sort of faux cut crease with this look. I ended up using Gold Light, since I feel like we are a little excessive with the pink already. This does take a bit of practice and, since I don’t do this too much, I don’t think this was my best application. Let’s just practice more!
I did the glitter liner to follow just above my natural crease so that it’s very visible when my eyes are closed but only hinted at when my eyes are open. To further accent is faux cut crease, I took a small pencil brush into the Wine/Burgundy Satin (the same shade as before) and applied it a bit more heavily underneath the glitter liner. This helps clean up the edge and also build dimension.
I also added in a hint of the glitter liner to my inner corners for the sake for this look but, generally, wouldn’t do this as my eyes water a lot and would get sensitive. I think that the eye look would work regardless so that’s more of an optional step.
I also then added my winged liner with a liquid liner pen – I find these a lot easier to use than the tubs and it also gives me the sharpest lines. For this look, I followed the line of my eye and extended it out towards the tip of the glitter liner (but didn’t connect the two).
Finishing off this look, I added in the little heart accent! This may be the hardest part to do but, really, it just takes practice. For this, I used a very small eyeliner brush (it’s good to get one as small as possible with a sturdy brush head – you can either get one at a make up store like I did or even head to an art store. A nail art brush will also work the same).
I took some of the Althea Flawless Creamy Concealer in Vanilla (feel free to use what ever shade will blend into your skin best – I used this lighter shade to make sure the heart stood out) on the back of my hand and then carefully drew out the heart. Depending on what type of look you’re doing, you can also use the concealer to draw other shapes but this is Valentines so lets get a little cliche hehe!
Afterward, top it off with your favourite mascara or false lashes. For eye looks, I usually like to use lashes (they just photograph better) but, as an example of something I am more likely to wear out, I did a few coats of mascara instead.
For the cheeks, I applied a blush very high up on my cheeks and just under my eyes – this is inspired by Japanese make up looks, actually, and the result is a very cute, youthful and rosy faced look. I do blend it down to my cheeks a little too, to keep the face looking rounded, as it can otherwise make you look a bit sick (which is actually a trend I love, but doesn’t really suit this make up look). For this look, I think that any rosy colour will work well. Just don’t use too bright a blush or it will conflict with the eyes.
I also added a hint of highlight to the cheek bones and nose with the Sunrise & Moonrise palette. I used the pink eyeshadow shade as a highlight too to match the slight colour on my brow bone. This pink shade actually works really well for my skin tone but, if you’d like something more neutral, you can also try the first pale nude shimmer. Remember that even though this is an eyeshadow palette, you can definitely use it for any other things on my face!
If you like to do any contouring, then now would be the time to do it. I personally didn’t contour for this look, only because I knew that I would be under these studio lights that I use to take photos (and that would create all the contour I needed).
And then it’s time to finish off the look! Honestly, you’re going to look out of place with these eyes and cheeks until you do your lips too, so this is a very important step! For this, I am actually going to be trying out the new Althea Watercolor Cream Tint, which is a highly pigmented creamy liquid lip stain with a hydrating glossy finish. They come in four very bold shades:
- Plum Cream: A rich, luxurious plum shade, perfect for a night out
- Strawberry Cream: A juicy red reminiscent of freshly bitten strawberries
- Peach Cream: A brightening, fresh coral with pink undertones to suit both warm and cool skin tone
- Marron Cream: An MLBB shade made from browns and pinks for a chic, everyday look
To me, the shades look rather similar once they are applied, even though they look more different in the tube. However, they’re still really pretty! They all belong in the same reddish family with some differences in the hue to suit different skin tones or looks. I really like this formula and I hope that they bring out some more adventurous shades in the future.
These are available at Althea Korea for either USD$5 each or in the Watercolor Cream Tint Set for USD$18. Personally, I don’t think that it’s necessary to get all four and I would instead just pick one or two that I would get the most use out of.
For this look, I chose to go with Peach Cream, which had a slightly more pink-coral undertone (although is still very red) to match the cheeks and eye look. I mostly applied this on the inside of my lips first but did build it up to full pigmentation. I feel like this make up look does call for a full lip, as this is a very dramatic sort of creative look. For the sake for wearability though, I did blend out the edges a little.
And then that’s it! That’s the whole look. After that, you let your hair down, put on something fun and go out and spoilt yourself (or have someone else spoil you – how ever you decide to spend your Valentines Day).
I do hope that you guys liked this tutorial/pictorial! This was the first time that I attempted this sort of post so it was really different for me and actually took me a long time to shoot. I do apologize if some of the photos aren’t as clear or as pretty as they should be but I will work on that!
In this whole Althea Korea make up collection, I have to say that I like the Flawless Creamy Concealer and the Watercolor Cream Tints the most! The Spotlight Glitter Liners are nice, just not something I use a lot in my collection. I also enjoy the shades in the Sunrise & Moonrise Palette but feel that the metallics really disappointed me, so there is room for improvement there. The Spot Film Gel is handy to have for when I have active break outs but would be best suited for people who do lighter make up.
Let me know in the comments how you like this sort of post and if I should do more of these in the future. They’re a bit different from Youtube tutorials and unfortunately I don’t have the means of doing them both at the same time.
And once again, thank you so much to Althea Korea for having me as one of their Althea Angels and for sending me new releases to play around with. Remember to check it all out on their website!
